A volcano on Indonesia’s Sumatra island has erupted with incredible violence, spewing a gigantic column of ash into the surrounding countryside. The extraordinary eruption even blocked out the sun as it blanketed villages in soot.
Mount Sinabung spat the enormous ash cloud five kilometers into the air on Monday, during its second eruption in three days.
Eyewitnesses reported hearing thunderous rumbling and explosion sounds. Video footage from the scene shows a giant cloud of dense ash rising high into the sky after spilling out of the mountain in Karo, North Sumatra.
Indonesia’s Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation Center said there have been no fatalities from the eruption. The center urged people to be aware of the danger of lava flows, and villagers were advised to stay five kilometers (3.1 miles) from the volcano.
The phenomenal density of the ash cloud plunged the island into darkness during the middle of the day and left villages 20 kilometers away covered in soot.
Indonesia is one of the world’s most volcanically active countries. Sinabung lay dormant for around 400 years before violently rumbling back to life in 2010, killing two people. Subsequent eruptions in 2014 and 2016 killed 16 and seven people respectively, while thousands of people have been forced to flee the area in recent years due to the volcanic activity.
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